Washington
‘These guys paved the way’: Old Bridge football season ends with return to sectional final
NJ football: Big Central Conference Media Day 2025 video
The Big Central Conference held a media day for the upcoming football season on Thursday, Aug. 7, 2025 at Hardwood Arena at Kean University in Union.
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WASHINGTON TWP. – As the Washington Township football players celebrated following their 38-7 win in the NJSIAA Central Group 5 final, the Old Bridge side met in an unhappy huddle in the far end zone on Friday, Nov. 14.
Knights head coach Matt Donaghue beckoned the 20 or so seniors to stand up at the front of the semicircle.
“You know what these guys did for the program,” he said, scanning the whole team and coaches. “These guys paved the way.”
He had everyone give a round of applause.
It was a fitting salute as the Knights reached a football sectional final for just the third time in program history to go along with their 2001 and 2015 appearances.
As the big underdogs against a juggernaut, Old Bridge likely needed some breaks, fortunate bounces and some intangible karma to go its way.
The third-seeded Knights (10-2) showed life at times – and made it interesting – but Washington Township (12-0) proved too much to repeat as sectional champions.
Top-seeded Washington Township (12-0) will play in next week’s Group 5 semifinals against Kingsway, which beat Atlantic City 38-21 in the South Group final.
Old Bridge trailed 17-7 with under two minutes left in the third quarter and seemed to have some momentum but a Washington Township blitz broke it open. The Minutemen scored three touchdowns in the final 1:49 of the third to open a 38-7 advantage.
It went: Andrew Osbron 5-yard touchdown run. Isaac Parra 40-yard interception return for a score. A Parker Reese interception off a tip from his own teammate followed by Colin Beeler spurting up the middle for a 42-yard run into the end zone on the final play of the quarter.
Just like that, any rally dreams died for the Old Bridge fans.
Osborn added touchdown runs of 5 and 29 yards for the powerhouse Gloucester County school. Washington Township has a program record of 469 points this season and won every game by double digits save for a 39-36 win over Kingsway.
Old Bridge, too, had a memorial campaign. The Knights advanced with two thrillers, a 38-31 win over sixth-seeded Freehold Township in the quarterfinals and a 28-27 semifinal win over second-seeded Sayreville.
Down 17-0 at halftime, Old Bridge scored on a 23-yard pass from Brody Nugent to Michael Chiarella, who made a nice catch in the end zone. Michael Firetto’s extra point cut it to 17-7 with 4:10 left in the third quarter
The Knights just couldn’t break through despite quality play. Old Bridge got two turnovers, Zach Florio came up with a sack to force a Kingsway punt and the offense twice drove to Washington’s 12-yard line but was stopped on downs.
In the end, it was Washington Township that celebrated with a trophy presentation with its fans.
As Donaghue ended his brief post-game remarks, he proclaimed, “Hold your heads up. Family.”
Washington
Washington Spirit players Croix Bethune, Kate Wiesner called up year’s final USWNT matches – WTOP News
Washington Spirit midfielder Croix Bethune and defender Kate Wiesner have been called up to the U.S. Women’s National Team for the side’s upcoming friendlies.
Defender Naomi Girma was named to the United States roster on Wednesday for a pair of upcoming matches against Italy after returning from a calf injury.
Girma had been sidelined since the start of the season with Chelsea but recently returned to the starting lineup. She has not played for the U.S. national team since a 3-0 victory over Canada on July 2.
The United States will play Italy for its final two matches of the year on Nov. 28 at Inter&Co Stadium in Orlando and on Dec. 1 at Chase Stadium in Ft. Lauderdale.
U.S. coach Emma Hayes named 26 players to the camp roster and 23 players will be available for each match.
Forward Trinity Rodman was left off the roster as she continues to recover from a knee injury. She appeared as a late substitute in the Washington Spirit’s 2-0 semifinal victory over the Portland Thorns this weekend and nearly scored in the sixth minute of stoppage time but her shot went just wide.
The Spirit play Gotham FC on Saturday in the National Women’s Soccer League championship game at PayPal Park in San Jose, California.
Goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce was also left off the U.S. roster while she recovers from a fractured eye socket sustained during a game with Manchester United last week.
“It’s been an exciting and important year for our group, and we’ve accomplished a lot of goals, expanded the player pool and made strides in our game model, so this camp will be an extension of that, but it will also set the groundwork for 2026, which will be our World Cup qualifying year,” Hayes said in a statement released by the team. “Games against top European teams are so valuable as they give us an honest assessment of where we are in our growth as a team, so I know our players with embrace that challenge.”
Two players have been called up to the national team for the first time: Bay FC goalkeeper Jordan Silkowitz and Chicago Stars forward Jameese Joseph. Washington Spirit defender Kate Wiesner earned a second call-up after being named as a training player for a camp last year.
The roster with club affiliation:
Goalkeepers: Claudia Dickey (Seattle Reign), Mandy McGlynn (Utah Royals), Silkowitz (Bay FC).
Defenders: Jordyn Bugg (Seattle Reign), Emily Fox (Arsenal), Girma (Chelsea), Avery Patterson (Houston Dash), Lilly Reale (Gotham), Izzy Rodriguez (Kansas City Current), Emily Sams (Orlando Pride), Emily Sonnett (Gotham), Kennedy Wesley (San Diego Wave), Kate Wiesner (Washington Spirit).
Midfielders: Croix Bethune (Washington Spirit), Sam Coffey (Portland Thorns), Lindsey Heaps (Lyon), Jaelin Howell (Gotham), Claire Hutton (Kansas City Current), Rose Lavelle (Gotham), Lily Yohannes (Lyon).
Forwards: Joseph (Chicago Stars), Catarina Macario (Chelsea), Olivia Moultrie (Portland Thorns), Emma Sears (Racing Louisville), Jaedyn Shaw (Gotham FC), Alyssa Thompson (Chelsea).
___
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Washington
Washington city leaders, business owners frustrated over trash-filled parking lot
City leaders in Washington say one of the busiest corners of their town has turned into an eyesore: a parking lot overflowing with trash, furniture, and old tires directly across from Washington High School.
Now, frustration is growing as the city waits for a court hearing before it can force a cleanup. Business owners say enough is enough.
“We’re doing everything we can legally do. We just can’t go on the property and start moving stuff,” said Washington Mayor JoJo Burgess.
Burgess says the spot at 308 Jefferson Avenue has turned into a junkyard that they can’t legally touch.
“I hate it whenever I hear people say, ‘Why are you letting him be there?’ We’re not letting him be there. If we were letting him be there, he would have a permit that says, ‘OK, you can be there.’ He doesn’t have that.”
The business, Hauling and That, moved in this summer. But by August, the mess had gotten out of control, and so had the complaints.
The city filed 10 citations against the property owner and the business owner, ranging from nuisance vehicles to unapproved solid-waste collection. Those citations also come with a daily fine.
“He’s calling me, telling me, ‘Will you work with me?’ No, I’m not going to work with you. I need you to get into compliance with what we say the rules are here in the city,” Mayor Burgess said.
“It’s definitely not a good look. We take a lot of pride in our shop, and having that across the street is definitely not good,” said Johnny Interval, owner of Barbiere. “It’s right across the street from the school. It’s just a bad look for the city in general, you know what I mean?”
The mayor says the mess stems from the owner never securing the proper permits or zoning approvals, something the city says it warned him about early on.
As the community watched the trash pile grow, the safety concern also grew.
“I’d hate for a kid to go get into that mess and find something and get hurt,” Mayor Burgess said. “That’s why we issued the citations. That’s why we’re going in front of the magistrate.”
A hearing is set for Nov. 25.
If the judge rules against the business owner, the fines could escalate quickly, and the city could eventually be permitted to step in and remove the debris.
Washington
RFK Jr. draws crowd and protests at GWU event
WASHINGTON (7News) — A large and vocal crowd gathered at the Lisner Auditorium at George Washington University for a Turning Point USA discussion that featured Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr.
This marked the group’s first high-profile event in Washington, D.C., since co-founder Charlie Kirk was shot and killed during an appearance in Utah.
Kennedy addressed topics ranging from vaccines to allergies.
While the packed auditorium was filled with cheering, the event also attracted protesters outside who were upset with Kennedy’s stances on healthcare.
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